Roseburg resident takes helm of Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub

Roseburg resident takes helm of Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub

Science and technology will come under the microscope in a dynamic way with the arrival of Lisa A. Lanza, who has been named Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub project manager.

Lisa Lanza, center, works with Glide students on a water quality testing project when she taught in the Glide School District. Lisa is now the program manager for the Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub, which helps connect students to science, technology, engineering and math opportunities. The Douglas County-wide program also includes artistic innovation as a component of STEM learning.

Lisa will be promoting education and activities linked to STEM courses – science, technology, engineering and mathematics. (The “A” stands for art, representing the link between those subjects and the artistic component of creative thinking.) She’ll be available to meet with the public at Explore Engineering 2015, which takes place from 6 to 8 p.m. Jan. 29 at the Danny Lang Teaching, Learning and Event Center at Umpqua Community College.

Lisa taught science in the Glide and Winston-Dillard school districts, where she launched community partnerships to support classroom activities. She conducted water quality testing with her Glide students in conjunction with the Roseburg Bureau of Land Management. She also took students on a field experience at Yellowstone National Park while at Winston Middle School. More recently she has been employed at UCC, working in career and technical education at the Wolf Creek Job Corps.

A graduate of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental science, Lisa has a master’s degree in science education with a biology emphasis from Syracuse University. She taught a rocket-building course last summer as a UCC youth camp instructor and is a wetland biological aide for the Cow Creek Umpqua Tribe.

Her STEAM Hub projects will be geared toward sending Douglas County students down career paths with some of the fastest-growing job opportunities in the workforce.

The Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub is one of six regional hubs awarded $2.8 million in state funds in February 2014. The hubs represent 21 counties and are working, among other goals, to double the number of students who earn a post-secondary degree requiring proficiency in STEM fields. The addition of arts is unique to the Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub, which serves all Douglas County students.

The Umpqua Valley STEAM Hub is a primary project of Douglas County Partners for Student Success, which is a group of community leaders invested in developing successful connections for all kids from cradle to career for parents, educators and students.